Harry Potter and the Wierdos From America
by Princess Cora and Star Glitter
Summary: After the Triwizard Tournament, Hogwarts undertakes a huge transfer program. Among the tranferers are the four Weirdos from America who make a world of difference...
1. Guess who I met on the train?

Harry Potter and the Wierdos from America  
  
Here it is, the old American transfer student story with unidentified twists! Yes indeed! This is a combined effort of Star Glitter (Lennon Star Glitter McCartney) and Princess Cora. Have fun!   
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
Chapter 1: Guess who I met on the train?  
  
Harry Potter pushed his cart through Kings Cross Station. Him and his two best friends, Ron and Hermione, were early to the platform: it was only 10:20. He knew the gates didn't open for another ten minutes, so the threesome had decided to go and wait by the barrier.  
  
There was no one on the platform but a few tourists and a tall girl with a cart-  
  
And an owl. And a trunk. Who was looking at the barrier.  
  
Obviously a witch. The thing is, she looked about his age and he had never seen her before. He knew all the people in his year, or at least what they looked like...  
  
"The barrier won't open for-" he looked at his watch. "-another five minutes."  
  
She whipped around. "Oh, thanks, I was wondering about that." They just looked at each other for a minute, then Hermione spoke up.  
  
"Are you a transfer student?"   
  
"Yes, I'm from America." she smiled.   
  
"Okay."  
  
Silence.  
  
Harry held out his hand. "I'm Harry Potter, this is Hermione Granger, and this here is Ron Weasley."  
  
"Hey, Harry. I'm Katy Amato."  
  
"Pleased to meet you."  
  
Ron consulted Hermione's watch. "It should be open by now."  
  
"Okay." She and Harry went in first, then Hermione and Ron.  
  
There was no one else on Platform 9 3/4. Katy was sufficently impressed by the great scarlet steam engine. They all heaved thier trunks up as more people poured into the platform.   
  
"Do you want to come sit with us?"  
  
"Sure, why not?"  
  
Ron whispered something in Hermione's ear, who snickered but whispered something in reply that sobered them both up.  
  
"Stop whispering."  
  
"Don't worry, it's about you."  
  
"Thanks." Harry turned to Katy. "My friends. Some friends they are." He shook his head mournfully. "Oh, well, I put up with them, they put up with me. Works out good."  
  
*~*~*~*  
  
Caleb Lowrey looked again at his letter. Through the barrier? Well, I suppose anything's possible... He looked around him. All he saw were Muggles for the 11:15 train. He pushed his cart towards the barrier, and-  
  
Out the other side. Wow.  
  
The great scarlet steam engine gleamed in the sunlight, and the platform was packed with students saying goodbye to their parents and greeting their friends. Claeb looked around for someone he knew, but Katy and AnneMarie were nowhere to be found.  
  
He looked up at the great clock. 10:46. He supposed he might as well get his trunk and owl inside the train. Then he could look for his fellow transfer students.  
  
*~*~*~*  
  
  
10:58! Two mintues! Damn. AnneMarie ran towards the barrier and out the other side. She stopped for only a second to admire the trian, then frantically dragged her trunk up into the train. She turned into the first half-empty compartment.  
  
"Hey, can I sit with you guys?"  
  
There were three girls sitting sprawled over the seats. The redheaded one nodded and moved some stuff to make room for AnneMarie and her trunk. "My name's Ginny - Ginny Weasley." The other two introduced themselves as Kelly and Emma.  
  
"Hey, I'm AnneMarie. I just transferred from America." WIth that, she sat down and pulled out a book.  
  
*~*~*~*  
  
"Wow."  
  
"Yeah, the tram ride at home really is beautiful. You can see all around for miles. It's wonderful." Katy grinned. She liked talking with Harry - he was cute, too.  
  
"Imagine that," Hermione said. "People from all over the country fly in, then you take the tram..."  
  
"Yep, that's Salem."  
  
"Wow."  
  
*~*~*~*  
  
"What's wrong?"  
  
"I've lost my toad."  
  
"Where did you last see him?"  
  
"I can't remember. My name's Neville, by the way. Who are you?"  
  
"Andrew Maurer. I'm from America."  
  
"Oh ok."  
  
*~*~*~*  
  
Caleb Lowrey sat in an empty compartment as the train started to move. He was reading the script for the play Starmites. It was one of his favorite plays.  
  
The compartment door slid open and four people come in. A pale boy with white-blond hair, two thug-like boys, and a girl who was all too familiar to Caleb...  
  
"Oh no. Not you. Not HERE. Anoyone but you..."  
  
*~*~*~*  
  
  
Rigging and other string that Vimes never botherd to learn the nautical names for covered the-  
  
"Hey, you read Terry Pratchett?" Ginny looked over at AnneMarie's book.  
  
"Yeah, he's one of my favorite authors. What's your favorite book in the series?"  
  
"Oh, Men At Arms, definetly... or the Truth."  
  
"Oh yeah, that's great, I like Soul Music too."  
  
"Ooo, I'd forgotten... How's Jingo?"  
  
"You've never read it?"  
  
"Oh I have, but you're halfway through-"  
  
"I've read it before, it's a favorite."  
  
Kelly and Emma looked at each other and shook their heads. They didn't share Ginny's passion for reading, they only read what they had to read. Emma took out an exploding snap deck as the train lurched forward. "Fancy a game?"  
  
"You're on."  
  
*~*~*~*  
  
"What, do you two know each other?" Draco Malfoy frowned. "Who are you, anyway?"  
  
"I'm Caleb, I just transferred from America."  
  
"Oh." He turned to Heather Ashley, but she had disappered out the door. He sighed and followed her. Her family had moved to England two years ago, and she had been sorted into Slytherin. She had started hanging out with him, and eventually she had asked him out. Whatever. They were going out now, anyway.  
  
*~*~*~*  
  
Andrew handed Neville his toad. "Here you go." The train started, making them trip. They got up and searched for a compartment. They were mostly full, but then they passed an almost empty compartment. Andrew opened the door, and Caleb greeted him.  
  
"Guess who's here?"  
  
"Who?"  
  
" 'Julia Nova' herself."  
  
"Not... Heather Ashley?"  
  
"Yep."  
  
"Oh no...."  
  
*~*~*~*  
  
The sun rose. The sun set. The Hogwarts Express pulled into the station.  
  
*~*~*~*  
  
"Katy!"  
  
"Ammie!"  
  
"How was your trip?"  
  
"You will never believe who I met on the train!"  
  
"Who?"  
  
"Harry Potter!"  
  
"No way! Is he cute?"  
  
"Of course! Well, I think so..."  
  
"Oh, he's not then."  
  
"Yes he is! Ammie, you haven't even seen him!"  
  
The two girls were walking towards the horseless carriages. Harry, Ron, and Hermione had gone off to talk with some other friends, and Katy had dragged AnneMarie away from Ginny and her friends. They were still arguing when Malfoy brushed past. AnneMarie's head turned, following him...  
  
"Ammie?"  
  
"Hmmm?" She turned back around. "What?"  
  
"Nothing."  
  
AnneMarie turned around and watched him getting into a carraige. "Now that's what I call cute."  
  
*sigh* "Come on, let's look for Caleb and Andrew."  
  
"okay."  
  
"I think I see them..." said Katy.  
  
"HEY CALEB!"   
  
The two boys turned around and saw AnneMarie waving to them. They pushed through the crowd.  
  
"Guess who-"  
  
"Guess who-" AnneMarie laughed. "You first."  
  
"No, you."  
  
"Well, guess who Katy saw on the train?"  
  
"Patrick Stewart?"  
  
blink blink. "No... Harry Potter!"  
  
"Yeah, he is our age isn't he?"  
  
"That's cool."  
  
Ammie and Katy exchanged glances. Well, they were boys. They didn't get obsessed like girls do. Oh well.  
  
"Anyway-" Katy clambered after the group into a carraige. "-who did you guys meet on the train?"  
  
"You remember how HA moved to England-"  
  
"Oh god no!!!"  
  
"Yes."  
  
"Damn."  
  
*~*~*~*  
  
  
"Wow. Wow wow wow wow wow." the foursome had stepped into the entrance hall.  
  
"This place is beautiful!"  
  
"It has over 140 staircases. And they move and change and some have a vanishing step where you have to jump. And doors that won't open unless you tickle them in the right place. And an enchanted ceiling in the Great Hall."  
  
The others turned incredlously to Katy. "Where did you find that out?" said Ammie.  
  
"Oh, I was talking to Harry and his friends and they were telling me about Hogwarts."  
  
"Oh, cool. I suppose we're headed towards the Great Hall now."  
  
"Let us be off, fair comrades!"  
  
"Shut up, Ammie."  
  
*~*~*~*  
  
When they were inside, they were waved over by Harry.   
  
"Katy! Come on and sit with us!"  
  
"Okay. This is AnneMarie, this is Caleb, and this is Andrew."  
  
"Harry Potter."  
  
"Hermione Granger."  
  
"Ron Weasley." They all shook hands and then sat down.  
  
"Do you have a little sister?" asked AnneMarie.  
  
"Yeah." Ron looked anxiously towards the door. "Ugh, can't we have the feast before the sorting?"  
  
"Sorting?" said Katy.  
  
"Yes," said Harry. "It's how we determine what house the new people go in."  
  
"Oh okay."  
  
*~*~*~*  
  
"My god, it's midnight. It's midnight and I'm not even tired." AnneMarie lay on her bed.  
  
"Jet lag."  
  
"Fancy a game of Secret?"  
  
"Ok, whatever."  
  
She dealed out the cards.   
  
"So, you think Harry's cute?"  
  
"Yeah..."  
  
"Not as cute as that kid I saw earlier."  
  
"Ha. Ha. Just play the game, will you?"  
  
  
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~  
  
Okay, there's the first chapter! Since this is a combined effort between Star Glitter and I, and we alternate chapters, it's going to be in slightly different styles, but whatever.  
  
Review. Or we won't put the next chapter up. Seriously.  
  
Next chapter: Ammie finds out how evil Draco is, Katy interprets dreams and Ron gets angry.  
  
liacoraginger@yahoo.com  
harrys_singing_angel@danielradcliffe.zzn.com 


	2. Dream and Revelation

Chapter 2: Dream and Revelation  
  
The next day, Ron woke up Harry and the two boys headed down to breakfast.  
  
"We've got Divination with Slytherin this year. And Care Of Magical Creatures with Hufflepuff." Ron read the schedule in between bites of toast.  
  
"Good morning, Harry." said Katy. "Good morning, Katy. Good Morning, Anne Marie. How are you today?" asked Harry. "We are pretty good today. You?" said Katy. "Good." said Harry and Ron in unison. "Hello Harry. Ron." said Hermione, who walked up to them at the table. "Here. These are for you two." said Hermione, handing Anne Marie and Katy schedules. "Thanks Hermione." said Anne Marie. Katy took one look at the schedule. "Great. Divination with H.A., followed by CMC with Sean." she said. "We're just happy Slytherin isn't in CMC with us. Something bad happens whenever we're in that class together." said Harry. "Really." Said Katy. "Yes." Said Harry. "How so?" asked Katy. "In my third year, the teacher, Hagrid, let us work with Hippogriffs." Said Harry. "Hippogriffs? Wow. They're hard to work with, aren't they?" Said Anne Marie. "Please continue." Said Katy. "Well." Continued Harry, "A boy in Slytherin, Draco Malfoy..." "You mean the boy Am l-" said Katy. "Shutup." "Yeah. He's mean and evil." "And a jerk." Butted in Ron. "Well. Anyway. The hippogriff, Buckbeak, Draco insulted it and it bit his arm." "Did they execute it?" whimpered Anne Marie. "No. We...." Hermione nudged Harry. "Uhhhh....It got free." "Oh. Okay. That's good." Said Anne Marie, smiling again.  
  
They walked to class together. Harry and Katy gabbed on while Anne Marie and Ron trailed quietly behind.  
  
"Hello class. As most of you know, I am Professor Trelawney. I welcome two more to our number, Anne Marie Rose McLemore and Katherine Scarlet Amato." She turned to Katy. "I feel a strong aura with you my dear. Oh, and dear your secret, the one you keep very secret, it will be reveiled soon." "I feel that." Katy replied. "Oh, and that lad you like, it will take time with that romance." "Didn't see that one comin'?" said Katy. "Anyway. Today we will look at our dreams and decipher them." She went on with the instructions. Harry and Katy were paired up. Ron and Anne Marie too.  
  
"Well......Who should go first?" asked Katy. "Will you?"  
  
"Sure. Ummmmm. In my dream, I went to a festival in Ammie's home state and one of my friends from Salem wasn't there. Then he showed up there in a Dalmatian suit." Katy and Harry started giggling. "Ummm. Then we were talking and were walking around. We got lost and we found this car..." "Can you remember what color it was?" asked Harry. "No, but I have a feeling it was dark, dark blue......Anyway. I drove it for, it felt like seconds, to my grandma's house. And weird thing. I dreamed it blue but it's turquoise. Anyway. We went inside and my grandma seemed like she was about to head out. Then she told me and him it was okay, for some weird reason." "That's all you can remember." Asked Harry. "Yes." Said Katy. "Okay. According to Unfogging the future, the Dalmatian suit means he has a very pure heart but the spots means he has problems or troubles. Your grandma said it was okay because there might be something in your life you may be worried about. That's all I can say." Said Harry. "Okay. You go." "Okay. Ummmmmm. Once in my dreams.................................. ~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
"Hullo." said Hagrid. "Our first class of the year is going to be on Unicorns." Hagrid moved aside to reveal a Mother and a foal. "Now I want the girls to come up first. Unicorns are known to have a witch approach them over wizards." With that, all the girls started to approach the Unicorns. Harry watched the girls. Then something caught his attention. Something Katy did. Katy was near the mother unicorn's head. It sounded as if Katy was talking to it. She neahed and it neahed back. "Okay. Now let's try it. Boys. Please come up here."said Hagrid. The boys approached the unicorns. But, something about one of the boys made the mother start to charge at one brown haired, dark brown eyed boy. He started running, yelling out for help. Then Katy did it again. She neahed to the unicorn. The mother stopped dead in it's tracks and stared at Katy. She kept neahing at it. It went back to it's foal. Ron looked at Katy in disbelief. "Were you talking to that Unicorn?" he asked. Katy looked at Ron with wide eyes. She tilted her head down. "Yes. That is my secret..................I'm an Animatounge." Everyone stared at her except for Ammie, Caleb, and Andrew. They had known this for years. ~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~  
  
Katy had been quiet almost the rest of the day. It was finally dinner. Harry wanted to talk to Katy. She walked into the Great Hall. Harry had already been sitting. "Hey Katy." he yelled out to her. She looked at him. "Sit here with me." "Okay."she said. She had sat down next to Harry. "So..............That was your secret." said Harry. "Yeah." said Katy in a sad tone. "Could you pass me the Spagetti Squash?"  
  
"Sure."said Harry. He handed her the spagetti squash. "You know....."Harry said. Katy looked up at him. "Yeah?" "I have a sort of a secret like that." "Really."said Katy in amazement. "What kinda secret?" "Promise not to tell anyone?" asked Harry. Katy bowed her head, saying "Yea." "I speak Parselmouth."said Harry. Katy stared at him for a second with amazement. More than before. "Whoa." "Yeah." he said. "I can speak to snakes." "It's hard for me to." she said. "Why? You can talk to animals, right? A snake is an animal, isn't it?" "Yes.........But, they have a language that is hard to speak. I can understand them but can't speak to them really." "So. You talk andunderstand animals but it's hardest for you to talk to snakes." said Harry. "And lizards too." said Katy. "So........Are you still my friend?" "Yeah........Oh course. Why wouldn't I be?"asked Harry. "Oh.....I don't know....Just because of my abnormality of being an Animatounge." "That is absolutely no reason to not be your friend."said Harry. He turned towards her. "I'd be your friend as long as you stay as great as you are right now." "Okay."said Katy. She finally was perky again. "So your on the Gryffindor Quidditch team, are you." ~*~*~*~*~*~*~*~* That is the end of Chapter 2. Written by Star Glitter. Next Chapter has a great event in it. 


	3. It's your Birthday? Happy Birthday!

Chapter 3: It's your birthday? Happy birthday!  
  
by Princess Cora aka AnneMarie  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*  
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
The rest of the month went by quite smoothly. Katy and Harry still talked about anything and everything. AnneMarie and Caleb constantly argued about the stupidest things, the latest being whether Caleb's drawing was of a girl owl in an overcoat or a guy owl in drag.  
  
Hermione was also quickly becoming a friend of Katy and (especially) AnneMarie. Her friends had usually always been been boys (except her childhood best friend Arachne), but now she was 15, and there were certain things you just couldn't talk to boys about. AnneMarie was alwyas willing to chat about guys or other "girl stuff." And yet, the times she liked best was whenever it was just her, and Ron, and Harry. They were still her best friends, and she theirs.   
  
On Friday, September 27th, Hermione was eating breakfast with Harry and Ron. Or, rather, Harry was eating, Hermione was reading, and Ron was writing. He seemed to always be writing nowadays, and every now and then he would look up and ask weird questions out of the blue, like "Do you remember what you felt when you saw Snape?" "What?" Harry would reply. "Oh, sorry, when you first saw him, at the feast right?" and Harry would answer, and Ron would write it down. Hermione had no idea what was going on. She had been asked some questions like that too... not as much as Harry though.   
  
She and Harry had both not asked about it... they had a feeling he might not want to tell them. But now Hermione's curiosity overcame her. "Ron... what are writing about?"  
  
He ignored her for a second, then he put down his pen. "You really want to know?"  
  
"Yes!" said Hermione with a laugh. Harry looked up from his oatmeal, suddenly interested.  
  
Ron's blue eyes sparkled as he leaned forward over his notes. "Well, I'm going to-" But just then Katy, Caleb, and Andrew came over and sat next to the threesome. Ron gave a tiny shake of his head and mouthed 'later' at her.  
  
"Where's AnneMarie?" asked Hermione, effectively changing the subject.  
  
Katy shrugged. "Probably still asleep."  
  
Hermione nodded. Ammie was not a morning person.  
  
Suddenly the object of their brief discussion bounced into the Great Hall and over to their table. "Heyyyyyyyyla!"  
  
Ron turned around with a start. "Well, you're looking special today."  
  
And she was. Her long dark brown hair, usually vaguely messy and tied back in a ponytail or a sloppy bun, was beautifully curly and unknotted. Two strips of hair were tied at the back of her head, keeping her hair away from her face. She had done something to the usual school uniform, everything that had been red and gold was now various shades of pink. And, for a final touch, she had tiny pink jewels nesting in her hair.  
  
"Well, it's my birthday today!"  
  
"Oh, really? Happy birthday then."  
  
"Yes, happy birthday! You're turning 15?" asked Hermione. Ammie nodded back.  
  
"Oh yeah, that's right, happy birthday!" Katy smiled.  
  
Harry looked up. "It's your birthday? Happy birthday."  
  
"It's your birthday?" said Andrew. "Cool, happy birthday."  
  
"Thanks." She sat beside Hermione and looked pointedly at Caleb.  
  
Caleb finally said, "Yea that too."  
  
"You know, if I could get to that side of the table quickly, which I can't, I would hit you."  
  
They all laughed and started talking. "So, when's your bithday?" Harry asked Katy.   
  
"November 24th. I'm turning 16." His eyebrows went up a few inches. No wonder she seemed so mature.  
  
"My birthday's in July - the 31st. I just turned fifteen this past July...." and they kept on talking.  
  
"So when's your birthday Hermione?"  
  
"September 19th." Nobody noticed the brief expression of horror that suddenly crossed her face.  
  
Ron looked up suddenly. "Really? Happy birthday Hermione!"  
  
"Thanks." Now she just seemed a bit embarrassed.  
  
AnneMarie looked from one to the other. "You never knew when your best friend's brithday was?"  
  
"Well..."  
"I mean..."  
"She never said..."  
"They never asked..."  
"I knew it was in September.."  
"It never really came up in conversation, you know?"  
  
Harry caught wind of the discussion, and quickly turned towards them. "When's your birthday Hermione?"  
  
She was very red now. "September 19th."  
  
"Wow, happy birthday then!"  
  
*~*~*~*  
  
Draco Malfoy stormed down the corridor towards the Arithmancy classroom. Over the summer, his appearance had changed dramatically. Not only was he much taller, his blond hair was finer and silkier, and his eyes were a lighter and icier gray. His face had matured, the angles of it were more defined and more beautiful. His appearance wasn't softer as much as refined and almost elegant. It also wasn't that he wasn't evil - but he was evil more gracefully. He had turned insulting Gryffindors into an art. And there was a certain fluidity in every motion he made, a certain grace that hadn't been there before.  
  
This was, perhaps, what attracted AnneMarie to him. When Ron and Hermione argued that he was obnoxious and horrible, she would say, Yes I know. But he has a stylish way of being so, a kind of elegant arrogance. Ron said she was crazy and there was nothing stylish about him, but Hermione too had noticed the change. That urbane panache. She would, of course, not even mention it to Ron. This was a perfect example of one of the things she couldn't talk to the boys about. She privately thought that something must have happened to him over the summer, something big that had caused such a change.  
  
Even now, as he stalked down the corridor, he could not help moving with a fluid grace that turned heads and caught stares. This he did not notice, because Draco Malfoy was angry. At what, or whom, he wasn't certain. All he knew was that something very weird and totally embarrassing had just happened to him, and he had no idea what to make of it.  
  
He had just come from a study period in the Great Hall, and met the Gryffindors coming up from Herbology. One of them popped up at his side... well at least he thought it was a Gryffindor. He wasn't sure about the Gryffindor colors suddenly being pink. She seemed very glad to see him. She had told him it was her birthday, he had told her to sod off... she seemed unfazed by his insults. She was actually quite pretty.  
  
BUT SHE'S SO DAMN ANNOYING!!!!!! Who gives if it's her birthday??? Draco didn't get it at all. But... she does have a nice smile...  
  
*~*~*~*  
  
[[ ____________________________________________________________  
[[  
[[ SATURDAY  
[[ September 28 Common Room  
[[   
[[ Good morning, world. Saturday... it feels so free. I'm the only one  
[[ awake.  
[[ So they know about my birthday. It can't be helped, I guess. It was  
[[ really all my fault. I just wasn't thinking. What is wrong with me? Usually I'm  
[[ so careful... it's because I'm hanging around AnneMarie. She's so much fun  
[[ and a great person, but a total scatterbrain. At least I have Ron to keep me  
[[ sane___  
[[   
  
"Hermione?"  
  
She looked up from her little black leather-bound diary. To her surprise, Ron's face was as bright red as his hair, and he was looking very, very, nervous.  
  
"Um... I was sort of wondering... if... well... could I borrow your diary?"  
  
Hermione blinked.  
  
"cuz you see, it's for the thing I'm writing... really... I wouldn't ask otherwise... if you don't want me reading it that's fine... I mean..." he trailed off, looking if possible more nervous than before.  
  
Hermione looked down at her diary. It had never been much of a dumping place for her... perhaps except in the first year, when she had no friends and no one but the diary to talk to. There was also some stuff about Ron in the 4th year diary... but...  
  
"I'll let you borrow it if tell me what you're writing."  
  
He paused, debating. "All right... but I have to tell you and Harry at the same time."  
  
"Then let's go wake him up and get this over with."  
  
*~*~*~*  
  
"So that's why you ask more questions abuot Harry and what he felt, and where he was!" Hermione looked relieved.   
  
"Yeah, because if I'm going to write a book about him, I'd better know his point of view on things. I certainly know mine."  
  
"If you're going to do our whole time at Hogwarts, you're going to have more than just one book."  
  
"True... maybe I'll make it a series, you know like "Harry Potter and... I dunno the Sorcerer's Stone" to begin with."  
  
"Harry? What do you think?" Hermione asked.  
  
Harry was doing a rather remarkable impression of a deer caught in the headlights of the Knight Bus.  
  
"You okay?" Ron looked worried.  
  
"Yea I'm fine just... a bit awed."  
  
"I just got the clearance this summer to publish it in the Muggle world as a fantasy book... that was my main idea, anyhow. The wizarding world has certainly had enough of you."  
  
That woke Harry up. "Hey!"  
  
"Joking, Harry, joking..." he looked at Hermione. "So... Hermione?"  
  
"Oh right. I'll be back in a second." she went out of the boy's dorm room, down the stairs, up the OTHER stairs, and into her room. After a few mintues of rummaging, she came up with a diary almost identical to the one she held in her hands, but it had 1st & 2nd stamped on it in curly writing. She hurried back to the boy's dormitory, taking off the various wards on the book as she did so.  
  
"Here you are. The first and second years. I took off the wards so it's safe to read, but it's still spelled against dirt and tearing."  
  
"Thanks a bunch Hermione."  
  
"No problem, really... It's your own fault if you read stuff you didn't want to!"  
  
*~*~*~*  
  
The lazy Saturday slipped by. Most of it was spent in the common room, mostly on account of the rain. By 3 in the sfternoon, everyone was bored and tired and wanted something to happen. Katy had gone up to the owlery, Ron was writing, Hermione was doing her Arithmancy homework with AnneMarie. Nobody to talk to. Harry was *bored*.  
  
Sudenly Katy came running into the common room. "OH MY GOD!!!" She had a huge smile on her face and she was jumping around excitedly, a letter in her hand.   
  
AnneMarie came up to her and snatched the letter out of her hand. She scanned it through. "Wow that's great and cool and awesome and.... COOL!!!!"  
  
"What is it?" said Harry.  
  
"Her mom just had a baby!" said AnneMarie.  
  
"Oh really! A boy or a girl?" said Caleb  
  
"A girl!!!" said Katy. "Her name's Brigid!!!!"  
  
"Wicked." As Harry looked over to Ron, he gave Harry the thumbs-up. Of course, Ron was writing this all down. They had to put up with Katy being hyper all weekend, but by Monday she was back to normal. But since Katy is normally hyper it wasn't much of a change. Oh, well. At least she was quiet while doing her homework.  
  
*~*~*~*  
  
Tuesday, October 1st. It promised to be a normal day: the sun was shining, the wind wasn't too cold, they didn't have too much homework, and Mercury (Ammie's evil cat) hadn't attacked anyone. Unfortunately, Nature never keeps her promises. The sevensome was peacefully eating lunch, or in Ammie's case finishing their Charms homework. Then suddenly a girl appeared at their table. Her hair had once been brown, but she had dyed it blonde. Her eyes were brown, her skin was tanned. She was wearing a white shirt and khaki pants under the school robes. The red-and-gold Gryffindor tie was threaded through her pants like some kind of belt.  
  
"G'day mates!!"  
  
They gave her blank stares.  
  
"Is this the Gryffindor table?"  
  
They nodded. Slowly.  
  
"Ok, awesome." She put down her plate and sat next to them.   
  
"A-are you a Gryffindor?"  
  
She nodded. "Name's Alexandria, call me Alexis. I'm from Australia."  
  
According to Alexis, she was supposed to get here at the beginning of the year like all of the new transfer students. However, the plane she was supposed to have taken left without her, then never came back, then was full, then crashed, then it was two weeks before another plane was available, and then the engines blew out so it got a late start, and finally...  
  
"Here I am!"  
  
They were still a little dazed. She talked very fast, with a very Australian accent. And besides, some of them had no idea what an airplane was.   
  
"Why didn't you just use some sort of wizarding transportation?" asked Hermione.  
  
Alexis shook her head. "Don't you know anything about Australia?"  
  
"A... a little. Just what I learned in the Muggle school I used to go to."  
  
"Do you know about the Great Barrier Reef?"  
  
Hermione nodded.  
  
"Well, not only does it keep any ships and whatnot from going in and out, it's also a magical barrier. You can't Apparate, Floo, Portkey, or anything else out of there. It throws you right back in."  
  
Hermione looked surprised, and so did everyone else. Surprised that Hermione didn't know it, that is.  
  
"So the only way to get there is to fly over it. Either by broomstick - which would be pretty bad all the way to England, or on a Muggle airplane."   
  
"What's an airplane?" asked Ron.  
  
Hermione sighed. Ron *really* need Muggle Studies...  
  
*~*~*~*  
  
They had just left for Charms, Hermione explaining to Ron about airplanes, when someone stepped in front of Alexis, blocking her way.  
  
"Well, well, well..." said Malfoy. "There's nothing better than an Aussie who thinks she's too good for the school uniform. What do they wear in Australia? Considering your taste... probably nothing."  
  
"That's right." she said. "We all just run around naked all day. I'm sure you'd just love that, right?" They were glaring at each other now.  
  
"Well, if a witch like you has no manners, god knows how the mudbloods at your school behave."  
  
"My school is Hogwarts." she was starting to lose her temper.  
  
"Oh really..." but before he could go on, Andrew moved forward and grabbed Draco by the front of his robes, nearly lifting him off his feet.  
  
"Watch what you say, Malfoy." then, before Draco could think of something nasty to say, shoved him backwards with suprising force into Goyle.  
  
One by one, the Gryffindors glared at Malfoy then turned away. Last was Alexis. "You know, in Australia, that would be considered verbal assault." She gave him stare for stare.   
  
"Well, you're not in Australia anymore. As you mentioned before."  
  
She glared at him, her anger building, and suddenly stamped as hard as she could on his toe.  
  
He just smirked at her. "Was that your best, Aussie?"  
  
"No!" she half screamed, half whispered. She turned and ran after her classmates towards the Charms room.  
  
*~*~*~*  
  
"Wow, you guys actually have a Defense Against the Dark Arts class?" They had come from Double Charms to find the DADA teacher, Professor Parvenah, missing so they were just chatting.  
  
"Of course, don't you?" said Ron.  
  
"No. We do have a required PFMC course."  
  
"a what?"  
  
"PFMC. Protection From Magical Creatures. Australia has about 90% of the world's dangerous magical creatures, and dangerous non-magical creatures, and we have to learn what to do about them and stuff." she grinned. "Your friend Lavender Brown had a run-in with a swamp dragon her very first day here. Totally harmless, but she got all frightened and nearly cursed the poor thing's head off. They put her with the first years in PFMC."  
  
"Swamp dragon?" asked Hermione.   
  
"Oh yeah, we have tons of those, all over the place. They're actually pretty sweet, but they make horrible pets. Never stay in the same place for very long."  
  
"Swamp dragon?" said Hermione again.  
  
"Yes. What's so big about that?"  
  
"I... I didn't know such a thing existed."  
  
She shrugged. "Well sure they do. Descended from regular dragons. Mind you, we've got quite a few of those too. We were just studying them when I left. It's a fifth-year thing. So what do you guys do in Defense Against the Dark Arts?"  
  
"Oh, lot's of stuff." said Harry. "Dark creatures, curses, poisons, how not to be an evil overlord... that sort of thing."  
  
"Cool. So is your DADA class just for Hogwarts or something?"  
  
"I don't know. What about you guys?" he said, addressing the Americans. "Do you have DADA classes?"  
  
"Well..." said Katy, "sort of."  
  
"No, we have the Young Auror's Program instead." said AnneMarie.  
  
"Really?" asked Harry.  
  
"Mmm-hmm. If you're thinking of being an Auror, you sign up with the program and then you go through all sorts of training, to get you familiar with the idea of fighting evil. If you get too scared or whatever, you can drop out. It's so you can know what you're getting into before you head off to the Auror college."  
  
"And then when the school is threatened by the Dark Side, the YAP as we call it goes and does some 'field work'," put in Katy  
  
"Are you planning to be an Auror?" he asked Katy.  
  
"Well, we're all in YAP together..."  
  
"We're practically the head of it..." said AnneMarie.  
  
"Correction: we *are* the head of it..." said Caleb  
  
"Well, I'm not sure about being an Auror, you can be in YAP even if you don't want to."  
  
AnneMarie spoke up again. "Yea, but we'll have enough practice-" Katy poked her in the side, hard.  
  
"Don't tell them everthing!" she hissed under her breath.  
  
She shut up. Katy was right. They shouldn't tell them everything. Not just yet.  
  
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*  
*~*~*~*~*~*~*~*  
  
Yay done! With this chapter obviously. Next chapter by Star Glitter, will be up ASAP. That is... if we get reviews....   
  
REVIEW!!! REVIEW!!! IT DOESN'T TAKE LONG PEOPLE!!!   
  
Disclaimer: I own nothing but myself and Alexis. No she does not exist. Katy, Caleb, and Andrew belong to themselves and everyone else belongs to J.K. Rowling. Oh and my cat Mercury belongs to me too.  
  
Next chapter: It's Halloween, more about YAP, and Mad Malfoy!!!  
  
liacoraginger@yahoo.com - AnneMarie  
Star_Glitter_Dreamer_Girl@starglitter.zzn.com - Katy  
delyon@merlyn.zzn.com - Caleb 


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